St Nick has Arrived
by Ande883
Summary: Christmas is almost here, but there is one problem: Nick might not make it home in time. Dedicated to all those who can't be home for Christmas.


**A/N: Ready for some fluffy goodness? Well, *wink* you came to the right place! Enjoy!**

* * *

 _11:47 PM - December 23rd_

Weary eyes gazed into the sullen room, red with exhaustion and strain. Cool air trickled through his exposed fur, granting a slight shiver combined with a yawn from the fox. The room pushed him away with its strange smells of the countless mammals who rested their heads, here, before him. The walls closed in on him as he entered. Yes, this was probably the scene of many a crime over the decades it existed. A flick of the light switch did little to cheer up the unnerving atmosphere. A single bulb on the ceiling painted the small motel room in a sickly yellow glow. Stained wallpaper hung loosely as though it would fall off any moment, peeling at the corners and come off entirely in spots. This room said one word to Nick.

Lonely.

His body shivered again. The fan from the large air conditioner distracted him from the rest of his unappealing accommodation. He turned, intent on warming up the room if only a few degrees. He knelt by the ancient machine and fiddled with the controls. A tiny and dim LCD screen refused to change with each press of a button. In frustration, Nick gave the side a smack. It only seemed to blow air even colder as revenge.

He sighed and trudged over to the bed. A quilt reminiscent of the ones his grandmother used to make adorned it and looked surprisingly clean. With a high-pitched creak, he layed down and rested his body for the first time in fourteen hours. No matter how hard and lumpy the mattress was, it felt good to stretch his limbs after a drive like that. And he was only halfway there.

Reaching into his pocket, Nick pulled out his phone. Unlocking it, he saw something that managed to put a smile on his face. A missed call from Judy that came nearly an hour ago. Without hesitation, he called her back, eager to hear something familiar while in a place so strange. He rested his head on a flat pillow and gently held the phone to his ear. It rang for a few seconds, then he heard a tired, hushed voice pipe through.

" _Hey, how was the drive, Slick?"_ Nick could almost hear the half smile through the call.

He sighed once more. "Awful," he whispered softly. "I just got shacked up in, well, a shack of a motel room. Cheap, but also a bit murdery. I feel like I'm gonna find a body in the closet."

Judy giggled quietly. " _Well, they've got the right mammal in that room if there is. How far did you make it?"_

"I'm about halfway. Should be home later tomorrow night."

" _Just in time for dinner?"_

"You know it," he said with a wink. The line went quiet for a moment.

" _You winked when you said that, didn't you?"_

Nick chuckled. "You know me so well. How are the kids?"

" _Nolan is currently asleep in my arms. I'm hoping he'll stay that way for a while. Stella is—"_ a high pitched giggle found its way to Nick's ear, and the sigh that came from Judy was nothing but pure frustration. "— _apparently too excited to sleep. I put her to bed over two hours ago!"_

Though it wasn't the first time he'd heard his daughter giggle this late at night, it was the first time he'd heard it in four days. Words couldn't express how much he missed his family. Sure, he knew he was going to be back, soon, but every day he was without his wife and children was a day that he felt a little bit of emptiness. The moment he heard her little voice come through the phone, a tear formed in one of his eyes.

" _Daddy!"_

He laughed again as he wiped them away. "How's daddy's little girl?"

" _I wanna open presents! Mommy says we can as soon as you get back!"_

"Opening presents before Christmas? How did you get so lucky?"

" _I dunno…"_

"What do you think Santa is going to give you?"

" _Hopefully everything on my list! We sent it to him, so I hope he got it!"_

"Well, I bet if you go to sleep now, he'll bring you everything you want. I love you, sweetie. I'll see you soon, ok?"

" _I love you, daddy."_

"Kisses?" Nick choked as he gently kissed right next to the microphone and heard his daughter do the same. "Wanna give the phone back to mommy?"

" _Ok!"_

Nick waited a moment before he heard Judy back on the line. " _I managed to get Nolan in his bed without waking him up. He hasn't been sleeping too well. Lots of times when he woke me up he said he didn't feel good."_

Nick sat up and rested his back against the wall with a pillow running up his back. "He's not sick, is he?"

Judy sighed. " _Might be because you aren't around. He started doing that the day you left for the conference."_

"I doubt it's because I'm gone. You _sure_ he's not sick or something?"

" _Everything else is fine. His temperature is normal, he's eating like usual. Apart from the frequent middle-of-the-night wake-ups, he's sleeping. Nothing is out of place except you. I miss you."_

Nick felt tears forming in his eyes again. "I miss you, too. But I'll be back tomorrow night. Don't you worry about a thing."

" _Hey, how was the conference? Boring, I assume?"_

"That doesn't even begin to describe it," Nick chuckled. "Sure, it was an honor to get to go, but boy, do some of those speeches go on forever! And why is it so far away? I mean, couldn't Bogo have spared a little extra for plane tickets? Would have made this all a lot easier!"

" _I feel you. It isn't that bad of a drive, though. Are the roads bad?"_

"A little icy, but nothing horrible."

" _Alright, just be careful. It's supposed to snow quite a bit tomorrow."_

Nick shrugged, though he knew she couldn't see it. "I'll be fine. Hopefully, I'll be close to home before it gets too bad. I'm going to leave pretty early tomorrow to try and get a head start."

" _Alright, I'll let you go, then. I don't need you falling asleep at the wheel. I love you."_

A big grin froze onto Nick's muzzle. "I love you, too. See you tomorrow."

" _See ya!"_

With that, he ended the call and replaced the pillow to its normal position. He got out of bed and flipped the light switch, only the glow of the lights outside filtering in through the curtains covering the single window. Not even bothering to take his clothes off, Nick covered himself in the quilt and rested his head. That night, he dreamed only of getting to see his family once again.

* * *

 _7:25 PM - December 24th_

Once again weary-eyed, Nick stared out of the windshield of the car with resilient focus. Yet, what he could see was nothing but a blur of white surrounding him. No matter how much he tried, visibility was never more than a few feet in front of his car. With nearly one hundred miles to go, Nick feared the inevitable.

He wasn't going to be home for dinner.

Eventually, Nick felt like he had to pull over. Not only couldn't he see much, the roads hadn't been plowed at all, making it incredibly dangerous for him to be out there.

He pulled off to the side of the road as much as he knew he could, then put the car in park and slowly pulled out his phone. He was one push of a button away from calling Judy to tell her the bad news, but he hesitated. It was Christmas Eve, and nobody wanted to be the bearer of bad news. But she had to know. He couldn't leave her wondering when he would show up. He pressed the button and waited for her to pick up.

" _Nick, are you almost home?"_

He hesitated once more, dreading the response he would get from her. "Almost, but I can't see a thing and the roads are just terrible. I don't think I'll be able to make it tonight. I'm sorry."

He waited… and waited. After what felt like an eternity, the faintest sound broke the silence.

"Judy… are you alright…?"

" _I'm fine…"_ she sniffed. " _I just… really want to see you, and_ _ **actually**_ _see you. I… I really miss you, Nick. Stella misses you. Nolan misses you. They're going to be so bummed when they find out you won't be home tonight. I don't know how to tell them that."_

Nick lowered his voice. "Judy, listen. They will be fine. I am going to drive as much as I can to try and be home."

" _Please, just stop for the night. I don't want you to not show up at all."_

He sighed. She had a good point. It wasn't worth the risk, nor was it even feasible at this point. He'd gotten up extra early to get a head start and it still wasn't enough, and now he was ready to fall asleep. Even if he did brave it through the snow and zero visibility, he would almost certainly fall asleep at the wheel.

"You're right. I need to stop. I'll see you tomorrow. I love you _so_ much, ok?"

" _I love you, Nick. Be safe out there."_

Nick was about to end the call when she stopped him. " _Wait, Nick! There's something I want to tell you!"_

"What is it?"

He waited for her to continue, but only silence filled the call. " _Never mind. I can wait for when you get home."_

"Alright. Sleep well. I love you."

" _I love you, too."_

As Nick pocketed his phone, he cracked his knuckles and put the car in gear, getting ready for the last little bit of a drive before he made it to the nearest rest stop. Though he couldn't make it tonight, there was one thing he knew was guaranteed.

He was going to see his family for Christmas.

* * *

 _7:00 AM - December 25th_

Very unrestful sleep was broken by the sound of a squeaky mattress and two little voices overly excited about Christmas morning. Judy cracked her eyes open to see Stella, her six-year-old daughter with an ear to ear smile, the little bunny bouncing up and down much like Judy at that age. Her three-year-old son, Nolan, who'd managed to climb onto the bed, was busy bouncing up and down as well, the little fox making all kinds of excited noises. A tired smile found its way to Judy's face and she got herself situated in bed.

"Mommy! It's time to open presents! Santa really came!"

"Santaaaaa!" shouted Nolan as he raised his tiny fists into the air and then fell backward onto the soft mattress.

Judy giggled as she removed her covers. "Alright you two, let's see what Santa brought you this year." She hopped down from the bed and let out a big yawn to get all of the tired out of her eyes. Her two children scurried out into the living room before she could even set off to the tree where gifts awaited them.

She exited the room and walked slowly out into the living room. The sight before her scared the rest of the tiredness out of her.

"Merry Christmas, Sweetheart." Nick stood with their kids at his side, wearing the silliest Santa costume complete with hat and an even sillier grin.

"Mommy, look who it is!" Stella exclaimed.

"It's Daddy!" Nolan shouted as he reached for his father. Nick picked him up and gave the little tod a kiss on the forehead.

"I didn't stop driving. Even though I couldn't see, I wasn't going to miss this for the world." he smiled, putting Nolan back on the ground.

Judy just stood there, dumbfounded at the sight before her. She stepped to him and smiled right before she wrapped him up in a tight hug. She squeezed him as hard as she could, eventually squeezing tears from her eyes. She looked up into his eyes and released him.

Then she gave him a thump on the head.

Nick rubbed the spot she hit. "Ow…"

"Nick, don't you ever do that again," she scolded. "You could have gotten in an accident, run off the road. You could have been hurt!"

"But I wasn't, Carrots. I made it home just fine."

"I know, but still…"

"Jolly ol' St. Nick still made it just fine."

Judy broke and couldn't help smiling again. In return for such a terrible pun, she gave him a gentle tap on the arm. "You're such a dork."

"Only your favorite dork in the world."

"You got that right," she said. "Hey, c'mere, I wanna show you something." She waved him over as she started leaving the room.

Stella and Nolan both issued cries of wanting to open presents now, rather than later. "We'll only be a few minutes, kiddos. Just be patient," Nick said, though ultimately knew it would do nothing to satisfy their urges to tear into the gifts. Judy led him into the bedroom. She sat him down on the bed and took a seat right next to him.

"Is this thing you want to show me going to have anything to do with why you were so eager to have me home?" Nick asked.

Judy nodded. "Well, yeah. I've got one extra gift for you."

Nick's ears perked up upon hearing that he was going to receive another gift. "Really, what is it? Can I see it?"

"Close your eyes." Nick did as he was instructed and closed his eyes. "Now hold out your paws." On command, Nick held his paws out, and Judy placed hers in his. "Ok, now open your eyes." He opened them, and upon only seeing Judy holding his paws, looked confused at her.

"Ok, I see you… I get that you're a gift to me every day, and—"

"I'm pregnant."

"—I absolutely love that you're _pregnant?!_ " Nick picked her up and spun her around the room while placing tiny kisses on her forehead. Judy squirmed to try and get away from the endless barrage of pecks.

"Nick! Oh my God, stop it! You do this every time!" she giggled. Nick eventually stopped and put her on the ground. "Literally, that _exact_ same reaction the last two times!"

"Can you blame me for being excited about this? This is great news! When did you find out?"

"I made an appointment with Dr. Sonja after you left. The test came back positive!" she smiled. Nick grabbed her by the cheeks and pressed his lips into hers. They shared each other's embrace as long as their two kids would allow. When shouts of impatience called them to the living room once more, they broke apart and collectively sighed.

"I've wanted to do that for six days," Nick whispered. He stood up while holding Judy's paws in his. "Let's celebrate. Those little monsters have probably destroyed the rest of the apartment by now."

"Hey, they're your kids, too. They get the destructive side from you!" she shot back. He decided not to press the issue any further. She was probably right about that last jab.

They walked back out into the living room together, and Judy gave the kids permission to tear into their presents. While the destruction commenced, Nick looked at the four stockings hanging up on a wall-mounted shelf. As he thought about how they would need to buy another one, he thought of another thing that would go well with them.

"Hey, Judy," he whispered as Nolan revealed his new toy police car and squealed with delight. "Since we need to get another stocking, I think a real fireplace would suit them much better than that old shelf."

She leaned into him, watching while Stella tore into her next gift. "I think that's a wonderful idea," she said. As the two watched, contented smiles found both of them.

It felt good to be home for Christmas.

* * *

 **A/N: Hope you all enjoyed this lovely little fluff-fest. As much as I dislike some things about Christmas (Mostly the music. I work in retail…) I still love how easy it is to pack immense amounts of fluff into a short story.**

 **A little update: Chapter 4 of Scar Tissue should be up before we get to 2019 (hard to think that 2018 is almost over). That is the plan at least, and I am on track to do that!**

 **And also, think about those that won't be home for Christmas. It can be a painful experience on both ends. Keep them in your prayers.**

 **Thanks for reading, take care, have a great day and Merry Christmas!**

 **-Ande**


End file.
